Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 236: To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will outline the total number of appointments to State boards since March 2011 under the aegis of his Department; the total number of appointments that have been advertised on his Department's website; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35609/12]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Health and Safety Authority (HSA) Mr John Newham, Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation was appointed to the Board of the Health and Safety Authority on the 10th April 2012. This appointment was a direct replacement for a former Principal Officer in the Department who retired from the Civil Service in February 2012.

Shannon Development

Mr Stephen Curran, Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation was appointed to the Board of Shannon Development on 23 February 2012. This appointment was a direct replacement of Mr Bob Keane, also a Civil Servant from my Department.

Forfas Mr John Murphy, Secretary General of the Department was appointed to the Board of Forfas with effect from 18th January 2012. The Industrial Development legislation provides that the Director General of Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) serves on the board of Forfas. Professor Mark Ferguson therefore became a member of the Forfas Board on taking up his position with SFI with effect from 18th January 2012. The SFI post is an ex officio appointment provided for in legislation. It has been the custom to appoint the Secretary General of the Department to the board of Forfas for reasons of policy cohesion and corporate governance.

National Standards Authority of Ireland Board (NSAI) Ms Barbara O'Leary and Mr Terry Landers were appointed to the Board of NSAI on 6th March 2012. Both appointments were publicly advertised and Ms O'Leary and Mr Landers both applied through the expressions of interest process. Two Staff Representatives, Ms Anne Clarke and Mr Kierán Cox, were also appointed by Minister Bruton following an open election within the agency.

Competition Authority

While it does not have a typical board structure, the Competition Authority consists of a Chairperson and up to four other members who act as an executive board. The Competition Acts 2002 to 2010 set out the requirements pertaining to appointments to the Authority. I re-appointed Mr Declan Purcell as Chairperson of the Competition Authority on 1st July 2011 and following his retirement, I subsequently appointed Ms Isolde Goggin as Chairperson on 1st October 2011 following her selection by the Public Appointments Service (PAS) who publicly advertised this position. I appointed Ms Noreen Mackey and Mr David McFadden as temporary members of the Authority in July 2011 and I subsequently re-appointed both from 1st October. On 9th August 2011, I re-appointed Mr Ciarán Quigley as a temporary member of the Authority. These temporary appointments were made in accordance with the Competition Acts 2002 to 2010 and did not require to be publicly advertised.

Advertisements for three full time members of the Competition Authority were published in June 2011 and following the completion of the PAS selection process for these posts I appointed Mr Stephen Calkins and Mr Gerald FitzGerald from December 2011 and Mr Patrick Kenny from January 2011.

Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority

Seven appointments were made to the Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority (IAASA). Mr Dave Martin and Mr Kevin O'Donovan were both appointed as nominees of the Prescribed Accountancy Bodies on the 26 May 2011. Ms Sylvia McNeece of the Irish Pension Board, Ms Deirdre Behan of the Revenue Commissioners, Ms Mairead Devine of the Central Bank, Ms Marie Daly of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation and Mr Sean Hawkshaw of the Irish Association of Investment Managers were all appointed as nominees of the Designated Bodies on the 3rd January 2012. As these appointments were made in compliance with the Companies (Auditing and Accounting) Act 2003 it was not appropriate to advertise the posts. One vacancy, recently advertised on the Public Appointments Service website, has not yet been filled.

National Consumer Agency

Ms Isolde Goggin was appointed to the Board of the National Consumer Agency in November 2011.

Ms Goggin's appointment as Chairperson of the Competition Authority and Chairperson designate of the new body which will be established on foot of the merger of the Competition Authority and the National Consumer Agency reflects the Government's commitment to the rationalisation of State agencies. Mr Stephen Costello, Chairman and Mr Robin O'Sullivan were both reappointed to the Agency with effect from 1st May 2012 and 6 May 2012 respectively. Ms Colleen Savage and Mr Eugene Gallagher were appointed to the Board of the National Consumer Agency on 6th May 2012. Both appointments were publicly advertised and Mr Gallagher applied through the expressions of interest process.

PIAB

Two appointments were made to the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) since March 2011. One was the re-appointment of Ms Ann Fitzgerald in her capacity as Chief Executive of the National Consumer Agency, which is a statutory position on the Board.

In the case of the second appointment, it was considered appropriate to have a representative from the Department on the Board and Ms Breda Power, Assistant Secretary, was appointed. Given the nature of this appointment, the post was not advertised.

Two vacancies on the Board which became vacant in April this year were advertised last month on the Public Appointments Service website (publicjobs.ie). No Appointments have yet been made in respect of these vacancies.

Science Foundation Ireland Dr. Rita Colwell and Professor Martina Newell-McGloughlin were both reappointed to the Board of Science Foundation Ireland with effect from 26th of July 2011. Dr Colwell and Professor Newell-McGloughlin are internationally renowned scientific experts in the Life Sciences and Biotechnology sectors. Professor Mark Ferguson was appointed to the Board of Science Foundation Ireland on 16th January 2012 on commencement in the post of Director General of the Foundation. The Director General is appointed in an ex-officio capacity to the Science Foundation Ireland Board in accordance with the Industrial Development (Science Foundation Ireland) Act 2003.

InterTrade Ireland

The InterTradeIreland Board expired on the 12th December 2011. The Minister, Deputy Richard Bruton nominated four new members to that Board. These members

included the following:

Mr Martin Cronin Chairman

Mr John Corbett

Mr Kevin Norton

Ms Mairead Sorenson

These four members were subsequently appointed to the Board on the 13th December, 2011 by the North South Ministerial Council.

Both Mr Brendan Butler and Ms Patricia McKeown who served on the last Board were re-appointed on the 13th December, 2011.

IDA

I recently made the following appointments to the Board of the IDA: Dermot Curran, Alan W. Gray, Peter Cassells and Mary Campbell. Ms Mary Campbell was identified following consultations with IDA Ireland to nominate a person with relevant financial expertise for my consideration for appointment to the Board.

Enterprise Ireland There have been no new appointments to the Board of Enterprise Ireland since March 2011, however, the expression of interest campaign for Enterprise Ireland closed on 1st of June.

A total of 12 Board vacancies have been advertised on the website of my Department and that of the Public Appointments Service since my appointment. I intend to shortly seek expressions of interest in respect of further Board vacancies that have arisen or are due to arise over the coming months. In this respect, my overriding focus is to find the best people for particular board appointments. In making appointments I will have regard to the expertise and experience of individuals, the balance of skills and attributes in terms of the overall composition of the board, the gender balance of the board and the availability and commitment of people to serve on the board.